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Issued:
2018-03-08

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A 14-year-old Victorville boy pretending to be a sheriff’s deputy was arrested after investigators said he drove around in a Ford Explorer equipped with blue and red flashing lights, launched phony investigations, pulled people over and found counterfeit money, simulation firearms, ballistic vests and other law enforcement related items in his home, officials said.

The unidentified teen — who was already on probation — was arrested Tuesday, March 6, when Sgt. Jeff Monroe spotted the Explorer and pulled it over, officials said. The teen was inside the vehicle, a San Bernardino County sheriff’s news release said.

Images captured from a home show the teen in a uniform resembling a sheriff’s deputy uniform wearing a baseball cap and sunglasses. From the image, it’s difficult to see if he appears his age.

“He is wearing what appears to be one of the types of uniforms our deputies wear,” said Victorville sheriff’s station spokeswoman Mara Rodriguez.

The images also show the white Explorer in a driveway with flashing lights mounted to the inside of the vehicle.

The investigation began Monday when deputies were called out to a home in the 13600 block of Mica Avenue in Victorville. The caller said someone had pulled a white Explorer into their driveway with red and blue lights flashing, the sheriff’s statement said. The vehicle had no marking indicating it was a Sheriff’s Department vehicle or even a law enforcement vehicle, the caller said.

The person told deputies someone in a sheriff’s uniform wearing a holster and what appeared to be a firearm walked up to the door and told everyone inside he was investigating a domestic disturbance, officials said.

“The homeowner informed him there was no problem and they had not placed a call to the police,” the release said. The unidentified person in the uniform then tried to open the homeowner’s door, but it was locked. The fake deputy, later determined to be the 14-year-old, got back into the Explorer and left after a short confrontation with the caller. Later, the person notified authorities of the suspicious encounter.